FAIRBANKS – The Alaska Nanooks athletics department and Head Athletic Trainer, Palmer Trolli, has announced the hiring of two new Assistant Athletic Trainers. Ashlyn McKenna and Zach Trzinski have officially joined the 'Nooks AT department. 
 
McKenna will work directly with women's basketball, women's swim and cross country and ski. Trzinski will work primarily with volleyball, men's basketball and cross country and ski. 
 
Ashlyn McKenna joins the Nanooks after spending the past year with Pike Country High School as an outreach athletic trainer. There, she evaluated and treated injuries for different athletes. She used individualized strength programs and therapy techniques on athletes while also communicating appropriate information with parents, teams and allied health care professionals. Prior to her position with Pike County High School, she spent half a year as a Per Diem Athletic Trainer. She worked in numerous locations throughout New England, assessing, evaluating and treating injuries for a variety of athletes. 
 
She also spent time at Lowell High School in Lowell, Mass. from Aug. 2019 to May 2020 and before Lowell HS, she was an Athletic Training Student at Colorado State-Pueblo from Aug. 2017 to May 2019. 
 
"Ashlyn is coming to Fairbanks with a passion to learn and grow in her profession," added Trolli, "We are excited to bring that mentality into the Athletic Training room and have her pass that drive on to our student-athletes."
 
McKenna graduated from CSU-Pueblo in May 2019 with a B.S. in Athletic Training before earning her M.S. in Exercise and Sport Science from Merrimack College in May 2020. She is also a certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist. 
 
Zach Trzinski joins the Nanooks after spending time with the Anchorage Wolverines and Eagle River High School through Orthopedic Physicians of Alaska. With the Wolverines, Trzinski provided medical care for practices, home games and all inter-state travel games while also ordering supplies to provide appropriate care and helped organize practice, home/away coverage schedules. He also helped at Eagle River High School, providing medical care for all activities at the high school and surrounding facilities. He assisted in football, volleyball, tennis, cheer/gymnastics, swim and dive, wrestling, cross country, skiing, basketball, hockey, soccer and track and field. 
 
Before Anchorage, Trzinski performed evaluations both on-site and in clinic during his Student Clinical Rotations. For 27 weeks he provided medical care for practices, home and away games in multiple states for the Minnesota Wilderness. Before that, for 29 weeks, he was in collegiate athletics at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point where he demonstrated treatments, rehab, practice and home-game coverage for multiple sports. From June 2010-October 2013, Trzinski served in the United States Military. He was a part of the Airborne Infantry, 82D Airborne Division in Ft. Bragg, N.C. 
 
While serving, he completed medical training for access and provided immediate trauma care.
 
"Zach is bringing some valuable life experience and an ability to connect with athletes to the Nanooks Athletic Training room." Said Trolli, "We are excited that he hit the ground running and his impact is already being felt amongst our student-athletes." 
 
He is B.O.C. certified, licensed in Alaska, has completed Bloodborne Pathogens Training, Emergency Medical Response, and is a NATA member. 
 
For more information on the Alaska Nanooks athletic department, follow @AlaskaNanooks on Instagram or Twitter, or like the Alaska Nanooks athletics page on Facebook.